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SYMPOSIA
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•••As of February 1, 2002
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| Environmental and Biological Diversity |
Deep-Sea Biodiversity: Pattern, Scale and Conservation
Saturday, February 16, 2002 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon |
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| Michael Rex, University of Massachusetts-Boston |
| This symposium examines deep-sea biodiversity at different levels of organization (genetic, community and landscape); and at spatial scales ranging from local to global, and temporal scales from months to major glacial cycles. The deep sea was long thought to be an ecologically stable and uniform environment. Recent discoveries have completely transformed our understanding of Earth’s largest ecosystem. The benthic landscape is revealed to be a topographically complex patchwork of distinctive, often unique, habitats. Levels of local species diversity can be extremely high and present new challenges to theories of species coexistence. Clear patterns of diversity have now been documented on local, regional and global scales. New research on molecular population genetics is showing, for the first time, how and where the rich and highly endemic deep-sea fauna evolved. The deep sea is a complicated and dynamic environment, and one that functions as an integral part of the global biosphere.This new overview of the deep sea originates from discussions of the Working Group on Deep-Sea Biodiversity at the National Center of Ecological Analysis and Synthesis in Santa Barbara. The deep sea is targeted for massive exploitation through mining, petroleum recovery and dumping. However, there are no clear international conservation protocols for this vast environment. |
| 1 | Patterns of Local Species Coexistence | Craig Smith (Speaker), University of Hawaii |
| 2 | Landscape and Regional Diversity | Lisa Levin (Speaker), Scripps Institution of Oceanography |
| 3 | Diversity of Chemosynthetic Habitats | Cindy Lee Van Dover (Speaker), College of William and Mary |
| 4 | Genetic Diversity | Ron Etter (Speaker), University of Massachusetts-Boston |
| 5 | Sustainable Development and Conservation | Robert Carney (Speaker), Louisiana State University |
| 6 | The Deep-Sea in the Context of Marine Conservation Strategies | Elliott Norse (Speaker), Marine Conservation Biology Institute |
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The Census of Marine Life: Challenges in Biodiversity
Sunday, February 17, 2002 3:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. |
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| Ronald O'Dor, Consortium for Oceanographic Research and Education; Cynthia J. Decker, Consortium for Oceanographic Research and Education; J. Frederick Grassle, Rutgers University |
| The Census of Marine Life (CoML) is an emerging, international research program that seeks to assess and explain the distribution, abundance, and diversity of marine organisms in the world oceans. The CoML has recently initiated the development of the Ocean Biogeographical Information System (OBIS), a distributed but integrated data management and visualization system that will be part of or coordinated with the Global Biodiversity Information Facility sponsored by the Organization for Economic Development and Cooperation. It is also being developed in conjunction with other new systems for managing large volumes of physical and chemical oceanographic data. The design of the system and population of it with historical data commenced in 2000 with government and private funding from the USA. The Census of Marine Life has also initiated an historical program that will be discussed, called the History of Marine Animal Populations (HMAP), that will analyze populations of marine organisms over the past 500-1000 years to examine both human-induced and natural long-term changes in these ecosystems. The CoML is also currently fostering six research projects, each focussed on demonstrating the use of different technologies or methods for examining the distribution, abundance, and diversity of organisms. |
| 1 | The Census of Marine Life: Progress and Prospects | Ronald O'Dor (Speaker), Consortium for Oceanographic Research and Education |
| 2 | The Ocean Biogeographical Information System | J. Frederick Grassle (Speaker), Rutgers University |
| 3 | History of Marine Animal Populations | Poul Holm (Speaker), Syddansk Universitet |
| 4 | Census of Marine Life in the Gulf of Maine | Kenneth G. Foote (Speaker), Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution |
| 5 | Pacific Ocean Salmon Tracking | David Welch (Speaker), Pacific Biological Station |
| 6 | CO/W WELCH | George Boehlert (Speaker), National Marine Fisheries Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration |
| 7 | Tagging of Pacific Pelagics | Barbara Block (Speaker), Stanford University |
| 8 | Chemosynthetic Ecosystems in the Arctic and Northern Atlantic Oceans | Cindy Lee Van Dover (Speaker), College of William and Mary |
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Genomic Approaches to Human Evolution
Monday, February 18, 2002 3:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. |
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| Kevin Davies, [Cell Press]; Geoffrey North, [Current Biology] |
| The field of molecular evolution has come a long way since its early days, when studies were crudely based on immunological relationships among proteins, and is destined to receive a great impetus from the availability of complete genome sequences, including human. Indeed, the explosion of genomic data has the potential to provide an enormous amount of information for studies of evolutionary relationships and processes. These DNA sequences can shed light on evolution at many levels: from the demographic history of human populations to relationships between species that have diverged relatively recently, notably the primates. The past few years have revealed a wealth of information regarding the origins of human populations over 100,000 years ago, the global migration patterns of our early ancestors, and the controversial relationship of Homo sapiens to the Neanderthals. Using batteries of new DNA markers, researchers have unveiled new clues to the identity of our forebearers, giving rise to romantic notions of the Seven Daughters of Eve and the Lost Tribes of Israel. And with the recently completed human genome sequence, many researchers are lobbying for a primate genome project in the hope of unearthing the key genetic events that punctuated the evolution of our species. This symposium brings together five leading authorities working on various aspects of primate evolution. |
| 1 | Genetic Changes that Made Us Human | Caro-Beth Stewart (Speaker), University of Albany, State University of New York |
| 2 | No Title Available | Heather Dawes (Chair), [Current Biology] |
| 3 | Molecular Phylogeny of the Hominoids | Maryellen Ruvolo (Speaker), Harvard University |
| 4 | No Title Available | David Stark (Chair), Cell Press |
| 5 | Primate Evolution: In and Out of Africa | Todd Disotell (Speaker), New York University |
| 6 | DNA from Fossils: Of Neanderthals and Men | Hendrik Poinar (Speaker), MaxPlanckInstitute |
| 7 | Human Migrations and Demographic History Using Multiple Genetic Systems | David Goldstein (Speaker), University College London |
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Wild Lands and Wildlife Conservation in the Americas
Sunday, February 17, 2002 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon |
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| Marina Ratchford, AAAS; Mahabir Gupta, Interciencia Association |
| Concern for the protection of natural habitats at the local level takes greater relevance when it is recognized that many migratory species depend on healthy ecosystems, which are spread across the American continent. A number of bats, butterflies, fish, birds and marine mammals move freely between the Nearctic and Neotropical regions and demonstrate the need to guarantee the conservation of habitats in many countries. Numerous local entities throughout the Americas have undertaken measures to mitigate the impacts of habitat destruction and species decline that originate within the boundaries of their influence. The development and implementation of international conservation initiatives have drawn together scientists, wildlife managers, planers, the private sector, conservation organizations, government officials and the general public to interact and try to achieve a substantial balance between requirements of environmental protection and economic and social development. This symposium examines the role of a number of entities in the protection of endangered habitats, present several case studies of conservation programs and research efforts and analyze the success of some of these conservation initiatives in the Western Hemisphere. The purpose is to foster an international perspective on initiatives to preserve habitats, share information and encourage dialogue and research on Inter-American conservation issues. |
| 1 | Agrarian Frontier Expansion in the Plata Basin: Patterns and Implications | Enrique H. Bucher (Speaker), Universidad Nacional de Cordoba |
| 2 | No Title Available | Theodore M. Smith (Moderator), Henry P. Kendall Foundation |
| 3 | Success and Failure of Conservation Programs | Lee M. Talbot (Speaker), George Mason University |
| 4 | Trends in Biodiversity Conservation in Mexico | Arturo Gomez-Pompa (Speaker), University of California |
| 5 | Environmental Threats and Conservation in the Brazilian Amazon | William Laurance (Speaker), Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute |
| 6 | Regional Development Projects, Human Needs and the Capitalization of Nature | Pablo Suarez (Speaker), Boston University |
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Biodiversity Survival in Modern Habitats
Saturday, February 16, 2002 3:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. |
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| Cynthia M. Beall, Case Western Reserve University; Catherine Badgley, University of Michigan |
| Human dimensions of biodiversity are integral to understanding biodiversity change and conservation. This symposium highlights several human aspects of biodiversity that are often overlooked. One is that humans have influenced the flora and fauna in their ecosystems for thousands of years. In some cases humans have caused extinctions and in others humans have maintained and even increased the biodiversity upon which their livelihood depends. Another aspect is that contemporary humans vary demographically, culturally, socio-economically and politically in ways that influence the connections between people and ecosystems. Understanding those variations is crucial for developing realistic scenarios about future global biodiversity. At the same time, there is the question of how to make rational plans for biodiversity and conservation in the face of perhaps irrational and inconsistent human goals and desires. This symposium was organized by the US National Committee for the International Union of Biological Sciences. |
| 1 | Human Impact on Ancient Biodiversity | Don Rice (Speaker), Southern Illinois University |
| 2 | Traditional Subsistence Patterns Can Maintain and Increase Biodiversity | Scot Atran (Speaker), University of Michigan |
| 3 | Biodiversity and Modern Urban | Ann P. Kinzig (Speaker), Arizona State University |
| 4 | Conservation of Biodiversity in a Human-Dominated World | Kent H. Redford (Speaker), The Wildlife Conservation Society |
| 5 | Irrationality and Biodiversity | A. Ross Kiester (Speaker), U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service |
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New Technologies Make Marine Reserves Imperative
Sunday, February 17, 2002 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon |
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| Charles Birkeland, Hawaii Cooperative Fishery Research Unit; Callum Roberts, Harvard University |
| For most of human history, fish and other marine species had naturally protected areas, places that were inaccessible to fishing. But rapid technological advances and escalating economic pressure, especially in the last 50 years, have completely changed the interactions of humans with marine resources, virtually eliminating nature’s refuges. Today, there are few places shallower than a mile that are not fished. As fishers have expanded their influence, we are beginning to appreciate the importance of such natural refuges for sustaining breeding stocks and the fisheries they supply. Some overexploited populations, especially on coral reefs, have failed to recover decades after depletion, challenging the common perception of rapid recovery after fishing pressure is removed. Severe depletion can undermine population resilience through effects on reproduction, recruitment, behavior, habitat integrity and interactions with other species. Now technological advances, economic growth (and greater disposable incomes), and new enterprises (e.g. live coral-reef fish trade for restaurants, bioprospecting, deepwater fishing, ornamental fisheries) are developing rapidly. With an increase of these activities that remove natural refuges (such as serial depletion of fish stocks and habitat destruction) it is important to examine the role of politically established marine reserves protected from all current and future technological impacts. It is important to all that technological advances must be accompanied by increased responsibility. Marine reserves are effective in allowing moderately depleted populations to rapidly recover, and their potential to supply fisheries is attracting great interest. |
| 1 | No Place to Hide: Technological Advances Remove Natural Fish Refuges | Charles Birkeland (Speaker), Hawaii Cooperative Fishery Research Unit |
| 2 | Removal of Fishing Pressure Does Not Guarantee Recovery | Jeffrey A. Hutchings (Speaker), Dalhousie University |
| 3 | Role of Coral Reef Science in the Management of Fisheries | Yvonne Sadovy (Speaker), The University of Hong Kong |
| 4 | Are We Giving the Fish a Chance to Reproduce | Howard Choat (Speaker), James Cook University |
| 5 | Marine Reserves as a Solution to Removal of Natural Refuges | Callum Roberts (Speaker), Harvard University |
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Restoring the Richness of the Seas: Historical Data--Unrealized Potentials
Friday, February 15, 2002 2:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. |
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| Jeremy Jackson, University of California-San Diego |
| Sustainability is the wrong goal for the oceans because what remains is but a small fraction of historic abundance. Pristine populations of historically important fisheries species were fantastically large in comparison with recent ecological observations. Paleoecological, archeological and historical data demonstrate that ecological extinction due to overfishing preceded all other pervasive human disturbance to coastal ecosystems, including pollution, degradation of water quality, introduced species, and anthropogenic climate change. Strong fishing pressures up to several centuries ago set off sequences of events that resulted in population explosions of sea urchins that overgrazed kelp forests, algae that smothered reef corals, slime molds that killed seagrasses, and microbial outbreaks that caused eutrophication, hypoxia and diseases. Time lags of decades to centuries occurred between the onset of overfishing and consequent changes in ecological communities because unfished species of similar trophic level assumed the ecological roles of overfished species until they too were overfished or died of epidemic diseases related to overcrowding. Retrospective data not only help to clarify underlying causes and rates of ecological change, but they also demonstrate achievable goals for restoration, management and exploitation of coastal ecosystems that far exceed what we contemplate today. |
| 1 | Historical Data in Theory and Practice | Roger Bradbury (Speaker), TJURUNGA Pty Ltd. |
| 2 | Setting a Baseline: World Fisheries and Ecosystems in 1950 | Daniel Pauly (Speaker), University of British Columbia |
| 3 | Long Ago and Far Away: Chain Reactions in Kelp Forests | James Estes (Speaker), University of California-Santa Cruz |
| 4 | Oysters Versus Eutrophication in Estuaries | Charles Peterson (Speaker), University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill |
| 5 | Why History Matters for Marine Conservation and Management | Jeremy Jackson (Speaker), University of California-San Diego |
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Biodiversity Science and Global Research: The International Biodiversity Observation Year
Friday, February 15, 2002 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon |
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| Diana H. Wall, Colorado State University; Andrew Dobson, Princeton University |
| The International Biodiversity Observation Year (IBOY) 2001-2002 occurs when our understanding of biodiversity and our dependence on it is being acknowledged as a paradigm shift in our view of the world. Whereas the benefits of an earlier scientific effort, the International Geophysical Year (IGY, 1957-1958) were initially intellectual but later realized as resetting the discipline, the benefits of greater knowledge of biodiversity can directly support efforts towards sustainability, affecting our quality of life now and for the future. IBOY sets the stage for an international collaboration of scientists that are involved in every aspect of the discovery of life on Earth and thus, IBOY has the potential to change our thinking much as IGY did. Biodiversity loss is the quintessential global problem with local loss of biodiversity having regional and global impacts. Earth is losing its biological diversity at rates 100 to 1000 times that expected without human influence and over a third of bird and mammal species may be on an irreversible path to extinction within the next few decades. Biodiversity loss affects ecosystem processes and services and threatens our food, water, air, soil, fuel, fiber and medicines. The many disciplines involved in biodiversity research are connecting through international research networks, significantly enhancing our ability to gather information on biodiversity at regional and global scales. Examples of their findings will illustrate how linking research across local levels provides new global information to facilitate discovery of new species, quantify biodiversity and its role in ecosystem processes and support conservation management. |
| 1 | An International Assessment of the Extent and Impact of Plant Invasions | Richard Mack (Speaker), Washington State University |
| 2 | DNA Banks for Endangered Species | Oliver Ryder (Speaker), Zoological Society of San Diego |
| 3 | Global Litter Invertebrate Decomposition Experiment | Diana H. Wall (Speaker), Colorado State University |
| 4 | AmphibiaWeb: An Informatics Approach to a Biodiversity Crisis | David Wake (Speaker), University of California-Berkeley |
| 5 | An Amazonia GIS System | Thomas Lovejoy (Speaker), World Bank |
| 6 | Millennium Ecosystem Assessment: Bridging the Science-Policy Gap | Walter V. Reid (Speaker), World Resources Institute |
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Evo-Devo: Reuniting Evolution and Development
Monday, February 18, 2002 9:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. |
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| Ann C. Burke, Wesleyan University |
| In 1996, the journal Science ranked the relationship between development and evolution second among the eight most important questions in the field of developmental biology. In the brief time since then, the study of development in an evolutionary context has become a field in its own right, generally referred to as EvoDevo. The re-emergence of this field is in large part due to the major advances in the techniques of molecular biology and the unprecedented availability of genetic sequence data. The ability to identify, examine, and experiment with developmental regulatory control genes has provided a major bridge between genotype and phenotype. The immense phylogenetic distance between phyla has been dramatically narrowed by the recognition that many of this class of genes are conserved to a degree previously unimagined. The advances in this field are on two fronts. The phylogenetic context for comparing developmental genes provides a historical dimension to our understanding of mechanisms. This perspective suggests hypotheses for further exploration of the phenomenology of the developmental process and its role in dysfunction and disease. On the other hand, comparison of the genetic underpinnings of organismic development within known phylogenies clearly demonstrates how development itself has evolved, how developmental mechanisms may have contributed to Macroevolutionary events and the origin of major groups. The talks in this symposium cover exciting new work on genetic mechanisms of animal and plant development and their impact on our understanding of organismic evolution. |
| 1 | Genetics and the Evolution of Form | Sean B. Carroll (Speaker), University of Wisconsin, Howard Hughes Medical Institute |
| 2 | Evolution of the Chordates and Development of Innate Immunity | Billie Swalla (Speaker), University of Washington-Seattle |
| 3 | Molecular Genetics and the Evolution of Patterning Mechanisms in the Avian Embryo | Cliff Tabin (Speaker), Harvard Medical School |
| 4 | The Complications and Rewards of Comparative Gene Expression in Plants | Elena M. Kramer (Speaker), Harvard University Herbaria |
| 5 | The Developmental Basis for the Evolution of Polymorphism in Ants | Gregory Wray (Speaker), Duke University |
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Community-Based and Sustainable Marine Resource Management: Incentives and Institutions
Friday, February 15, 2002 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon |
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| Fiorenza Micheli, Stanford University; Rafe Sagarin, Stanford University; Julia Novy-Hildesley, World Wildlife Fund |
| Sessions on the theory of marine reserves and aquaculture at the 2001 AAAS meeting highlighted the tremendous public and scientific interest in the management and conservation of marine resources. In addition to presenting the promise of conservation tools such as no-take marine reserves, these sessions highlighted the complexity of managing marine resources and the need for multiple approaches to management problems. It is clear that effective conservation and management of marine ecosystems will require reducing conflict among user groups while creating incentives for sustainable management. This symposium focuses on comanagement and community-based management of marine resources from the perspective of resource users, managers and scientists. Multiple uses of coastal resources are discussed in relation to their economic costs and benefits and their potential biological impacts. Failures and successes in community-based management will be examined, successful examples as models for the implementation of such approaches will be discussed, and urgent theory and data needs will be identified. A focal point of this discussion will be the role of institutions and incentives in community-based management and conservation. For example, the fishery certification process initiated by the marine stewardship council aims to promote economic benefits and sustainability of the fisheries through rewarding local communities for sound management practices. Different forms of incentives for community-based sustainable fisheries will be discussed in the broader content of marine resource management. |
| 1 | Introduction | James Acheson (Speaker), University of Maine |
| 2 | Community-Based Fisheries Certification | Julia Novy-Hildesley (Speaker), World Wildlife Fund |
| 3 | Economic Models for Small-Scale Fisheries | Joan Roughgarden (Speaker), Stanford University |
| 4 | Societal and Cultural Impacts from Different Models of Resource Use | Richard Stoffle (Speaker), University of Arizona |
| 5 | Marine Resource Co-Management in Chile | Miriam Fernandez (Speaker), Pontificia Universidad Catolica De Chile |
| 6 | Fishing Cooperatives in Mexico | Mario Ramade Villanueva (Speaker), Federacion Regional de Sociedades Cooperativas Pesqueras |
| 7 | Community-Based Coastal Resource Management in the Philippines | Angel C. Alcala (Speaker), Silliman University-Philippines |
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Organogenesis, De Novo or De Ovo?
Monday, February 18, 2002 3:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. |
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| Pamela J. Hines, AAAS and [Science]; Beverly A. Purnell, AAAS and [Science] |
| All animals begin life as a generally unstructured single cell. From there to the fully developed adult with a huge variety of specialized cells types structured neatly into the various body organs, the cells undergo a complex series of developmental events. Stem cells, when taken out of the context of normal development can seemingly bypass some of that orchestrated development. What are the normal processes of organogenesis? In what way does the differentiation from stem cells in culture or when used in tissue replacement therapy compare and contrast with the normal routes for development of organs that encompass similar physiological functions? The specific signaling molecules and the interactions among tissues that direct organogenesis are rapidly being identified. By understanding the normal development of organs, we may not only learn how to better manage organ development in the face of disruptions by disease or environmental factors but we may also discover how to direct more effectively the development of stem cells toward useful therapeutic purposes. For example, therapeutic uses of stem cells may be envisioned to extend to tissue repair and organ regeneration. The greatest challenge and hope is to harness the mechanisms revealed by basic biology research to develop therapies for the many different human injuries and diseases. |
| 1 | Brain Development and Stem Cells | Derek J. van der Kooy (Speaker), University of Toronto |
| 2 | Eye (Retinal) Development | Connie Cepko (Speaker), Harvard Medical School |
| 3 | Stem Cell Lineages of the Skin | Elaine V. Fuchs (Speaker), University of Chicago |
| 4 | Coordination of Growth and Differentiation in Vertebrate Skeleton | Andrew P. McMahon (Speaker), Harvard University |
| 5 | Early Organogenesis from the Endoderm | Kenneth Zaret (Speaker), Fox Chase Cancer Center-Philadelphia |
| 6 | Stem Cells for Pancreatic Islets | Douglas A. Melton (Speaker), Harvard University |
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